


The Only One Who Knows

by devilcouldweep



Category: Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: Drag Queens, M/M, Past Abuse, Slow Burn, more tags to be added later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-18
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-05-08 10:19:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14692164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devilcouldweep/pseuds/devilcouldweep
Summary: Feeling sick and tired of the big and lonely city, Yu moves to Yongen-Jaya. He meets someone unforgettable there; another wildcard named Akira Kurusu. It can be so hard to let someone in, but what will happen when their universes collide?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Yooooo thanks for clicking on this fic. I have a lot of chapters written already, so the story is about 50% complete I would say. Stick around for updates, be brave, and have a nice day.

As sad as it may seem, adulthood takes you away from your friends. Yu Narukami still had them, but it was rare when he got to see them, and he had let others into his life, hard as that was. After Adachi, well it hadn’t been very easy.

He loved Inaba and the times he shared with his friends, but once he left, they began to scatter as well, and soon enough Nanako and Dojima were all that remained. It was hard to get in touch with the others.

Once in awhile he visited Dojima though. He was getting grayer, and Nanako was growing up fast; she was so beautiful. He was pleasantly surprised when he got to meet her the last time. She became more mature with each visit it seemed.

So Yu Narukami didn’t return to Inaba, but he moved instead to a prefecture called Yongen-Jaya. It was the best of both worlds, he thought-- It wasn’t as tame as Inaba but it wasn’t like the big city either. He hated the city worse than anything. It was so devoid of compassion or human decency. A man could be left to die in the street, and everyone would still be on their way to work.

He tried living with his parents for a time, but he came to the conclusion soon enough that they didn't want him around. It was painful to live with his parents, so he kept his distance from any reminders. 

It really wasn’t all bad, though. He had a job that he liked, and a night job he liked even better. He always did overwork.

His day job was as an investigative journalist. He investigated the more paranormal aspects of popular cases and managed to turn it into a popular podcast, though he was just a writer. Yu would be embarrassed to call it popular, though.

His night job was as a server in a bar down in Shinjuku. To be more precise, he was a crossdresser. It was a hobby that he was forced to enjoy many years ago when his friends signed him onto a crossdressing competition without his consent. It was the best mistake ever.

_ And _ at the time it had been hilarious.

On nights where he wasn’t working at the bar, he ate out. Normally he would just eat the finger-foods they served, but sometimes he could hear the scolding voice of Chie or Yukiko telling him to eat more. Honestly, any time he got a call from any of his friends they scolded him about his health.

He knew it just meant they still cared, and he cared about them as well.

Tonight just happened to be another one of those nights he had off, and he didn’t feel like catching the train downtown to eat anything fancy. Luckily, there was a small cafe around the corner from his place that he liked to eat at, called LeBlanc. 

It had amazing food, although there was only one item on the menu; Yu appreciated the quiet atmosphere but he wished that the place got more business for The Owners sake.

The bell above his head chimed as he pushed the heavy door open, and he could immediately felt the warmth of the building seep into his skin. His hair still felt cold, though.

“Hey,” The Owner said with familiarity in his voice, though Yu knew that neither one of them knew the other’s name.

“Hello again,” He said politely, “It’s cold out.”

“Puh!” The Owner huffed. “You’re telling me; everything gets colder when you’re old.”

Yu laughed warmly at his complaining.

“You want a plate?” he asked callously as Yu took a seat at the bar. Yu didn’t mind at all. It reminded him of Dojima, who was turning more and more gray lately.

“Yes; I’ll take a cup of coffee too. Columbian, please.”

As usual, Yu waited patiently for The Owner to stir up a hot plate for him and stared at the TV in the corner with mild interest. Nothing ever seemed to be as interesting anymore since the Phantom Thieves stopped appearing; Yu reported on them often and talked with a lot of fans about the thieves in their hayday.

He was a phanboy with or without work involved anyways.

He didn’t know much about cognitive science outside of the layman’s version of it but his experiences in the past helped him make sense of it online and at work.

The Boss set his coffee down, and he sipped it carefully as he continued to stare at the TV.

The TV volume was so low that it could barely be heard, but Yu wasn’t paying much attention. He wondered what happened to the leader of the thieves, Akira Kurusu, whose face was hidden due to the fact that he was a minor at the time.

Yu did read about him a little more in a popular book written about the thieves, but the author, Yuuki Mishima, remains quiet in interviews about any personal information. In the book he speaks to the characters of all of the thieves, referring to them as their codenames, and details their exploits, but Yu still wanted to learn more.

He tried to get Yuuki on the podcast but he politely declined.

Mostly, the thieves reminded him of the world behind the TV, but more than that, Akira Kurusu in particular reminded him of his own pursuit for the truth.

The fact that his personal information was hidden was for the best, but still. A guy has to wonder. Joker was the only thief who was outed, so Yu also had to wonder where the others were.

But Yu thought if the Phantom Thieves were a band, Akira Kurusu was the singer.  _ Everyone _ wanted info on him.

Yu got knocked out of his daze when The Owner set a heavy, hot plate of curry down onto the counter, clacking the ceramic loudly.

“Here you go. It’s all yours,” He said with some small pride.

Yu appreciated it. He liked the curry there a lot since each time it was a little different. He heaped a steaming spoonful into his watering mouth just as his stomach began to growl.

“Hm,” Yu sighed, swallowing his food quickly. “It’s not very spicy today. Is there coconut in this?”

“You found me out again,” The Owner answered sort of fondly. “It’s nice having someone in here who knows a little something about food.”

“I used to cook a lot while I was in high school but it’s hard to find the time now,” Yu answered, wearing the smallest of smiles. 

Making lunch for his friends was a small pleasure that he took for granted in high school. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the time, it was that he had no one to cook for anymore.

“Kids these days give themselves too much work,” the Owner said, grimacing. “You sound just like my son.”

“Oh, yeah?” Yu asked. The Boss usually didn’t bring up any personal information, so Yu was a bit intrigued to find out more. It didn’t help that he was naturally inquisitive.

“Heh,  _ Yeah,” _ He said, glancing at the TV. “He’s coming back from college for the holidays. Actually I’m going to be closing the shop up early tonight so I can go pick him up from the station.”

Yu smiled again. ‘I’ll bet he would be happy to know you were thinking of him.”

The Owner seemed to fluster, ordering him to hurry up and finish his plate, so he did, but it only made him think of Dojima again. He was like a father to Yu, more so than his own father, even despite his shortcomings.

And he never could bear to get too sentimental for too long.

The Boss was a huge part of why he liked LeBlanc, truth be told.

Yu quietly cleared his platter, handing The Boss a neat bill when he was done, and walked back to his apartment with his hands in his pockets.

~

Akira stepped away from the bustling train onto the platform and felt the cold, air blast him; it was a fresh breath of winter.

And with winter, as always, came a flux of emotions. With seeing his homemade family again, came revisiting some painful times. Akira thought that they were also the best times as well.

It definitely wasn’t all bad.

He climbed the damp stairs of the busy station and stepped out into the city, searching with impatient eyes for Sojiro’s old clunker. He spotted it in less than a minute, and quickly walked over to it with the snow beneath his feet crunching loudly.

He swung open the car door, surprising Sojiro, who had been reading the paper to try and pass the time.

“Jeez Kid!!” He exclaimed at the same time as Akira said, “Long time no see!”

Akira launched himself across the stick shift to throw his arms around Sojiro’s stiff shoulders.

“The hell’s a’matter with you!?”

“Did you miss me?” Akira asked slyly, pulling away to fasten his seatbelt. “Where’s Futaba?”

“She’s at her part time job. Gets off in a hour or so,” Sojiro said, grimacing. He didn’t wear a sour face for long though. He began to smile, though he tried to hide it with his hand.

“She can’t wait to see you,” he added with uncharacteristic tenderness.

“Ah, me either,” Akira sighed. He knew what Sojiro was really trying to say was ‘we both couldn’t wait to see you,’ and he appreciated the sentiment. Akira also felt proud that Futaba was doing more things on her own.

The car coughed to life, and they pulled away from the station and into traffic, which somehow wasn’t too bad. Akira was relieved to just be off his feet. He leaned back into the peeling old leather of his seat.

“So, is business still slow as ever?” He asked, though not unkindly.

“Yeah, the old Ayanami couple stopped coming around… I think her husband passed. But there’s a new young customer who comes in pretty often. Actually sort of reminds me of you,” Sojiro trailed off.

“That’s a shame about the Ayanami’s. It’s nice to have a new customer though! Even nicer that he reminds you of me,” Akira wiggled his brows.

“Bah! Shut it!”

Akira laughed and laughed as they moved down the street, but he eventually schooled his face.

“I’m really happy to be back,” Akira said, suddenly serious.

“Yeah, well,” Sojiro muttered. “You’re welcome back any time. I know you’re busy with school, but…” Once again it seemed that Sojiro was unable to finish his sentence.

"I know," He replied calmly. Akira didn't need Sojiro to finish his sentence to know what he was trying to say.

Life had been kind to Akira so far. He leaned back into the car seat, wondering about his old friends, and the ones he hadn't met yet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for even bothering to click on this fic!!

 

The next time Yu showed up to LeBlanc, it was actually just for some morning coffee. He had an early start with his editor, and he also had to work at the bar later that night

The thing was, Yu didn’t even like coffee that much; he preferred tea. He just couldn’t stop showing his face at Leblanc, though. Something about the place felt isolated. There really was no such thing as bad news inside the little shop.

He hadn’t bothered to take his coat off as he sipped his coffee. He kept glancing at his phone, counting down the minutes before he had to leave for the train station.

He sighed and set his phone down, glancing up at the old TV. Maybe if this place would just upgrade some things it would start drumming up more sales? Then again, The Boss seemed to have no interest in advertising. Yu found this place on accident, himself.

It wasn’t as if it was any of his business, but he couldn’t help but want better things for the boss. He was endearing and reminiscent of Dojima in a lot of ways.

The Boss was standing on the other side of the bar preparing the register and taking note of their stock. Every so often he grumbled something to himself.

He was hunched over, looking at a lower shelf. When he straightened up he placed a hand on his back and sighed.

“You seem tired today,” Yu commented.

“M’ just old,” The Boss muttered. “You are right though. My son’s only been back one day but he’s already wreaking havoc,” he added fondly.

Yu rested his head on his palm and lazily smiled up at the TV. “Sounds like a real handful.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” The Owner laughed.

Then suddenly something Yu had never seen or heard before happened; The stairs on the far side of LeBlanc creaked loudly, and someone emerged from upstairs. Yu was helpless to stare.

“ _Sojiro_ ,” the man from the stairs called in a singsong voice. He stood next to the bar with his pale hand on the counter.

“ _ Don’t disturb the customers _ ,” The Boss, whose name apparently was ‘Sojiro,’ warned tiredly.

“Sorry about that,” the man from the stairs said to Yu. They caught eyes for a moment, and Yu looked away.

“It’s fine, really,” he said meekly.

Sojiro's boy looked at him for a moment longer before he went back to ignoring Yu in favor of talking with Sojiro. Yu tried to be polite and avoid listening but they were right in front of him; it was impossible.

“I need to get flowers,” The man said. “Then after that I’m going to be out for a while, just saying hi to as many people as I can.”

Yu was jealous for a brief moment that the man seemed to have many friends to return to.

“Here, I’ll give you some money. I want to buy him flowers as well,” Sojiro said somberly.

Yu knew what that was like. He used to Visit Saki Konishi’s grave with Yosuke a long time ago. Yosuke would always struggle to pick out flowers for her, as if he somehow was still afraid she would be disappointed in him.

He knew better than to judge Yosuke for that. They had all learned about insecurity the hard way.

The man from upstairs reached his hand out to take Sojiro’s money, and Yu really took the chance to really see his face.

His pale face was framed by waves of inky black hair, and his eyeliner was on perfectly behind his glasses. He had pink lips that seemed to smile slyly no matter what was going on. Somehow he was the perfect blend of androgyny. Well, Yu knew a little something or two about that.

Yu’s final consensus was that Sojiro’s son was really quite beautiful.  _ If  _ that really was his son. Yu could only guess.

“Thanks,” He finally said, a little more sober than before. “Well, I’m outta here. See you.”

The man stuffed the money into his pocket and strolled out the door, and Yu was almost as helpless to stare after him as he was to watch his entrance.

“He’s a handful but he is really a great kid,” Sojiro said. “Every time he comes down here he makes sure to get him flowers.”

Despite not knowing who ‘he’ was, Yu felt sorry for his loss. He felt a detached sense of sadness for the family.

He was glad that whoever the flowers were for was still remembered fondly.

“I know how hard that is,” Yu said in consolation. He had mourned for Adachi, who was sentenced to death and killed a few years ago. He mourned, but he wasn’t sure why. Even after all this time it still hurt.

“Me and my little cousin, she’s like my sister-- Whenever I see her we deliver flowers to our old friend as well. She insists.”

“She sounds like a sweet girl,” Sojiro said somberly.

“Yeah,” Yu breathed, “She is.”

Yu didn’t have much to add to that, so he sipped his coffee, eventually turning back to the TV with unseeing eyes. 

~

The night was always kind to Yu no matter how long his day was. He put on his drag, and positively shimmered in the dimly lit bar. He greeted lots of people, listened to their problems and forgot about his own. The were always new faces, but there were also some old ones.

He could be someone else for a night.

Yu charmed a lot of the people who came through. After all, he was gorgeous when he covered himself in embellishments. It was rare that the charming went the other way around.

When Yu finally made it to Crossroads, he was a completely different man than he was when he started the day. That is to say, he was a woman, for the time.

He had grown out of his twin braids from high school and instead wore a neatly cut wig of the same length, and threw out his old delinquent look completely. Instead, he opted for something a little more classy and shapely. He still liked to wear dark colors,though. The only odd detail he liked to add, was a pair of yellow colored-contacts. It was an homage to his other self, he supposed.

He remembered Rise joking that his look was more like a  _ ‘silver glam-witch. _ ’ Yu thought he really liked that description. She was the one who taught him most of his tricks. The rest came with experience.

His dress tonight was not revealing, but the way it clung to his body left little to the imagination. He wore silver jewelry and light makeup to further his timeless appearance. He never dressed that big, but he did have a bit of an eye for art when it came to his drag.

“Lala-chan, is Ohya coming tonight? Have you heard from her?” Yu asked in a lighter voice than he would normally use. Actually, he and Ohya worked competitively and belonged to two opposing publishing offices. Not that it really meant much to either of them outside of work.

Crossroads was the safest of heavens after all. They were actually good friends.

“I haven’t heard from her at all, sweetheart,” Lala said in her deep, smokers voice. “It’s still early, though. She might still show up.”

Yu thought that Ohya was actually a big reason why working at Crossroads was so fun. When she got past a certain point of drunk, there was no stopping her. Of course it meant that Yu had to protect her from herself, but he liked doing it because he thought it was hilarious.

He cleaned cups and wiped down the counters until a customer came it, looking very, very familiar.

The stranger strolled into the bar dressed in all black, though no small detail was lost on Yu. He wore androgynous heels, flattering pants, and a sweater. He sat down directly in front of Yu at the bar.

“Hey there, love,” Yu winked. He could smell the stranger’s cologne, though it was faint. “Can I get you a drink?”

“That would be great,” he said easily. Yu was nearly entranced by their deep voice. “Would you mind getting me a screwdriver?”

Yu just couldn’t place that voice to save his own life.

“Sure thing,” Yu drawled. He began to prepare the drink as he continued talking. “So, you’re a new face. What’s your name?”

“I think the new face around here is you, sweetheart. But to answer your question, I’m Akira.”

“A cute name for a cute stranger,” Yu said, placing the drink he mixed on the counter in front of the stranger. “You can call me Yuko.”

Yu had chosen the name for himself a long, long time ago for the crossdressing pageant. Although it was forced on him all those years ago, he found himself rather comfortable with the new persona.

Sometimes Yu liked wearing another face.

“That’s a fitting name, I think,” The stranger admitted, sipping his drink. “When did you start here?”

“About a year ago during the fall, I believe,” Yu guessed, keeping his eyes locked with the stranger.

“Ah, so that’s why I haven’t met you. You came around the time I left for school,” The stranger laughed.

With that admission, it became clear who the stranger really was. It was Sojiro’s boy, looking as pretty as ever, too. Yu just hoped Akira hadn’t recognized him as well.

“Oh my goodness! If it isn’t Akira!” Lala suddenly exclaimed next to them.

“Hey, Lala! I’m back,” Akira said warmly. Yu was surprised Lala seemed to like him so much.

“It’s so wonderful to see you! I see you’ve met Yuko, here,” Lala said conversationally.

Akira nodded, glancing at Yu’s pretty face. “Where’s Ohya?”

“Oh, dear I have no idea,” Lala said dramatically. “Everyone is wondering where she is-- I have no clue! Knowing her, she’s probably on her way!”

It seemed like Lala was getting frustrated with Ohya’s absence, but everyone knew it was just for show. Lala loved Ohya like a daughter.

“Well, at least I can be surrounded by beautiful faces while we wait for her,” Akira winked, looking at Yu head on. 

They chatted for a few minutes, but eventually Yu pried himself away from Akira to serve other customers. He’d asked if Akira wanted something to sip on, but he said his night wasn’t quite over. He was just here to say hello, it seemed.

He wondered what else Akira had to busy himself with. He started his day just as early as Yu had.

Ohya burst in through the door just a few minutes later, wearing a jolly smile. She was always jolly around alcohol.

“Hello, everybody!” She said, not realizing Akira was back. She held her arms above her head in a grand fashion but no one greeted her back. She waited a beat.

“Greet me back!!”

Akira started laughing, and then Ohya finally noticed him sitting there. Yu liked his laugh; it was theatrical.

“Akira, you’re back,” She said as she bounded across the bar to finally say hello. “This bar hasn’t been the same without you.”

Akira laughed. “Yuko seems like she can fill in my shoes just fine.” The way Akira looked at Yu when he said that was like how one looks at an old friend, Yu thought. He was good at putting on airs.

“Well, you’re right about that,” Lala-chan admitted, always opting for the blunt truth.

“Yuko is my competitor, though,” Ohya said. “With you back home, I’ll be able to write her out of business,” she cheered.

“Ohya, you devil,” Yu cursed playfully. “Even if your pretty informant was a  _ Phantom Thief _ you couldn’t blow our publication out.”

Ohya began to laugh hysterically and Lala checked her nails. Yu didn’t think it was that funny.

“Yuko, Ohya, I would be happy to  _ ‘inform’  _ you both that I’m just here for christmas break. There won’t be any tidy soundbites from me this time.”

Yu folded his arms and looked at Akira contemplatively as Ohya tried to calm down her laughing. It made sense that the three would know each other if Akira was really an informant, but still something just seemed odd about the trio.

He figured it wasn’t any of his business, and got back to serving drinks.

The night carried on in this bantering fashion, and the longer Yu tried to work, the more he felt that he wanted to chat Akira up. He’d discovered that in the past, before he was of age, he was a bartender at Crossroads.

Ohya eventually got so drunk she couldn’t hold her head up anymore so Yu ritualistically got her a cup of water and a bendy straw and made her put her head down. He usually had to help her home on nights this bad.

“I missed this sight,” Akira said dreamily, looking at Ohya on verge of passing out. “She’s going to destroy her liver,” he added thoughtfully.

The customers were nearly depleted, and Yu had cleaned most of the glasses. He stopped being so busy and forced himself to get to know Akira, because he didn’t want to be strangers anymore.

“She’ll be fine,” Yu said in an almost motherly way, ruffling her hair. “So, you’re in college. What for?”

“Theatre,” Akira said.

“That suits you,” Yu praised. “You’ve got that dramatic voice, and you dress to impress; I would love to see you perform one day.”

It was true; Yu adored men who wore what they wanted to, and as embarrassing as it was, he really enjoyed the sound of Akira’s voice. He wondered how much younger he was.

“Thanks,” Akira said, mock bowing from his seat. “If I make it, I’ll bring you with me-- to paint my face. I love what you’ve done with yourself tonight…  _ Mr. Customer... _ ” 

When Akira sudden;y coined that nickname, Yu knew he was caught.

“So, you remember my real face, huh?” Yu sighed, feeling called out.

“Of course,” Akira said, debonair and confident as one really could be. “And what a beautiful face it is. I was a little sad this morning that I didn’t have much time to really meet you.”

Yu was a little surprised to hear that. He guessed it was easier for younger people to be so bold.

“That’s… Nice of you,” Yu settled on, turning down his eyes to instead focus on the glass he was cleaning. He was letting his shyness peek through the glamorous mask he wore, to his slight discomfort.

“Sorry,” Akira said, suddenly sober. “I don’t want to overstep any boundaries here. I just thought you looked… lonely, sitting by yourself in the early morning. You reminded me of someone I once knew.”

Yu looked back up at Akira’s face. He wore an unreadable expression, though somehow Yu thought it looked familiar.

“Don’t worry, I’m not upset. If you’d like, we can share a cup of coffee sometime... Just don’t go getting any ideas,” He said with a wink.

The college boy showed a winning smile at the invitation.

“I would love to have coffee with the real you, as charming as this side of you is. I think your inner woman is too expensive for a poor student like myself to afford,” Akira joked.

Yu laughed lightly, tapping one manicured nail to his temple. “Nonsense. I may appear to be dipped in gold tonight but think less gold and more… Gilded…”

“What are you suggesting?” Akira asked thoughtfully.

“It’s a symbol of something we all have to learn at some point: The lesson is that we all have other masks or facades that we wear so that we can protect our hearts from the truth. When I’m in drag, I’m wearing a caricature of my true self,” Yu said carefully.

Akira furrowed his brows at Yu, almost tensing up. “Your answer is well thought out.”

“Should it not be?” Yu said, leaning on the counter with a sharp nail to his colored lips. His face was close to Akira’s and he could smell his cologne. “You know, drag is more than playing dress-up to some of us…”

Akira continued to stare until suddenly the tension left his posture, as if he made a connection in his mind.

“You remind me of a good friend of mine. He took the arts very seriously as well and always tried to make a statement with his creations. I’m sorry if I offended you.”

“It’s alright,” Yu sighed, standing upright once more. “When the dress comes off, so does the mask… _ Mostly _ ,” Yu winked. “And anyways, I hope that didn’t sound very pretentious; That is just what drag is for me personally.”

“Not to worry,” Akira breathed, “I have learned the lesson you were just talking about, and if that’s the case, I can’t wait to meet the real you again.”

“Alright, silver-tongue,” Yu finally said. “Enough theatrics. I think dear Ohya  _ will not _ last another minute without vomitting.”

It was probably true. They both looked over at her seemingly dead body as she groaned very suddenly about feeling sick, though her slurring was hard to understand.

“I think I have to be on my way soon enough myself,” Akira admitted, looking at Ohya still with fondness in his expression. Yu thought that Akira was a sweet kid. “Actually, I hadn’t meant to stay this long, but I really enjoyed your company. When will you be at LeBlanc next?”

“I try to go every morning,” Yu admitted.

“Then, I may see you as early as tomorrow morning,” Akira said. He got up from his chair and put some bills onto the counter. “The change is all for you, Yuko. Take care.”

They bid each other farewell, and Yu watched his back as he blew a kiss.

Yu made his way around the counter, and helped Ohya stand up, feeling butterflies for the first time in a very long time.


End file.
